Hi everyone! If you can't already tell, I'm really stoked about this update. I hope you like it as much as I did. In this very clever chapter, I have made proper use of the previous chapter and *drum roll* I have introduced the girl Hibari was supposed to meet. I wonder if you're sufficiently surprised... Please let me know in your reviews? Many, many thanks to all of you who give me the psyche to keep on writing. Till the next chapter!

DISCLAIMER: I do not own KHR nor do I claim any rights to it or any of the characters and/or locations in this fan fiction story that you may recognise from the anime/manga. I am only responsible for the plot and nothing else.

"Don't forget, only Haru."

Haru shook her head to try and forget the memory. Ironically, she had been asked not to forget and now she wanted to do just that and get on with her days. Hibari-sama had left. They had spent no more time together which she was thankful and sorrowful about. He had made her feel all sorts of strange things and she had to wonder to herself if this was truly like the relationship she dreamed about since she was a little girl.

Of course, she was still a maid. He was still her master. There was nothing different about that – not exactly.

Akira-san had agreed to keep the news of Haru leaving to herself. In exchange, Haru had to do some extra work every day until Hibari-sama came back. She didn't mind. Akira-san, for all her stern glares and strict rules was like a mother to all the staff. She took them all to task and nagged and pushed but they all knew it came from a good place. That Haru kept getting in trouble was just in her nature. Even the nuns at the convent had taken to crossing themselves in her presence when they thought she wasn't looking.

He would be back in a few days and she wondered what he had meant by, in his words, "making her understand". She was curious about that statement. He wanted to make her understand that he only wanted her. She was giddy with glee already and she was sure she sported a blush on her face for most of the day.

She picked up her laundry basket and made her way to the laundry room to fold and iron the clothes she had. She was just approaching a corner when she heard her name being mentioned.

"Mari-san is so lucky, nee? She has to attend to Hibari-sama every day and she's special friends with Takeshi-sama too… I wish one of them would notice me."

"She's a maid just like any of us, you know. And why would you want Hibari-sama to notice you? How many maids has he had before?"

"Many I guess. He is still very handsome and looks like he would be very demanding... but that's not so bad nee?"

"I suppose not, if you like that kind of thing. I have wondered about the special treatment Mari-san gets though… do you think maybe she… does things for them?"

"Don't be silly. Of course she doesn't get special treatment. Have you seen how many punishments she's gotten just this week?" The maids laughed. Haru stayed very silent. She knew she wasn't meant to eavesdrop, but she couldn't help it.

"Speaking of Hibari-sama, I heard a rumour about where he's really going," the first one said.

"Another rumour? You really need to get more relevant sources."

"I heard this one myself and from a very trusted source. Tsuyoshi-sama left a few days ago, you remember?"

"The whole house knows that. He went away for business."

"Yes, personal business. He went to find Hibari-sama a bride."

"EH!?" The first maid clamped a soapy hand over the mouth of the second one then immediately regretted the action and chuckled even as she admonished her friend.

"Keep it down, do you want to tell the whole house?"

"A bride? Does that mean we'll be getting a new mistress soon?"

"I don't know. Hibari-sama is very particular, but he always does what his father says. Even when he says no, he finds a way to accommodate him. Since Takeshi-sama is already engaged to the Kokuyo heiress, it is only fair that Hibari-sama marries into a similar class or higher, you know?"

"True, even if something is happening with Hibari-sama and Mari-san, nothing will come of it, right? I mean..."

Haru didn't wait to hear any more. Squaring her shoulders and putting a smile on her face, she turned the corner and walked past the two maids. They smiled in greeting and remained silent while she passed, not knowing she'd heard the entire exchange. She was good at schooling her features... mostly. Hibari-sama seemed to be the only one she couldn't hide things from.

With a purposeful stride, she made her way into the laundry room and shut the door. Thankfully she was alone. She dropped the basket in her hands and leaned her forehead against the door.

So that was the plan. He was going to find himself a wife. Why had he mentioned that he only wanted her? Did he mean he was going to defy his father or did he mean he would never love his wife and only wanted her as a... as a mistress?

The word left a sour taste in her mouth. He wasn't going to get her as a mistress. She had vowed long ago that the only man she would give her heart properly to would be her husband. If he did want her, she was going to be his wife or not at all. Of course she was a maid and there was very little chance of that happening at all. She knew that as well as she knew her own name. Society would reject her for her background. It was how their world worked. Their relationship had been doomed from the start. Hibari-sama probably knew it too.

If that was the case, if all of this had been truly one big joke or a pleasant pastime, then she could simply thank him for everything and leave. She would just finish serving her sentence and that would be the end of that. He couldn't possibly think to keep her and she certainly wouldn't let him if he tried.

Surely there was no shortage of maids in town. If she happened to get a glowing recommendation from Akira-san, she could easily find employment elsewhere. She would be nobody's second choice. That was where she absolutely drew the line.

The nerve of the man! If he was going to get himself a wife, he shouldn't have led her on. How greedy could one man get? Of all the...

"Do you trust me?"

The memory interrupted her angry thoughts. He had looked completely sincere when he had asked her that. He wasn't very expressive but she had started learning a few things about him and knew most of his expressions and this was one of them.

"I only want Haru."

What did that mean? If she truly trusted him, she wouldn't believe these rumours, would she? She shouldn't... but what was she supposed to believe? He hadn't told her where he was going; only that he would come back and make her understand. He hadn't said much besides that and he had kissed her senseless yet again. She refused to believe he would be so callous. Hibari-sama was a lot of things but callous was definitely not one of them.

She fisted her hands and took a few deep, calming breaths. She needed to get a hold of herself before her feelings ran away with her. She had decided to trust him no matter what so she shouldn't be second-guessing herself now. Some of her anger dissipated and she even managed a smile over how silly she was being... at least she hoped she was being silly.

She picked up the first linen from her pile and, setting aside all other unpleasant thoughts, she went back to work.

*.*.*.*.*.*.*

"Excuse me Miss, your intended has come. Your cousin has sent me to fetch you. The gentlemen await you in the study."

"Thank you," said the young woman sitting at her vanity. She had sat there to wait for Hibari to arrive from the moment she got ready that morning. There were a million things racing through her mind. She knew it was a good match and many would approve. It was her duty to the family and she knew it.

It didn't make her happy though. She had learned a little about her intended over the days since the announcement. It was just an initial meeting and nothing was set in stone but everyone seemed to think they would be perfect for each other. A fleeting look of worry crossed her features as she smoothed out the skirt of her dress and then rose from her seat.

"Please ask the maids to get the tea ready and ask the butler to see to it that we are not disturbed."

"It shall be seen to Miss. Will that be all?"

"Yes it shall." She straightened her shoulders and walked calmly out the door. This was what was expected of her. Anything else would be disgraceful to the family and she knew as well as anyone else did that appearances were everything. Her family had worked hard to get where they were and she would not be the cause of their shame. Her feelings in this arrangement didn't matter. As head of the family, her cousin had been the one to suggest they meet and it wasn't a very terrible idea. She would probably make a good match with Hibari-sama.

She knew he was practical. He was fair and he was stoic. He was also strong and she had been told he was nice to look at – whatever that meant. Moreover, he was the head of security in his town government. She couldn't really ask for a better match. It was practical and it was sound. They would learn to get along with each other. If not, she would make certain they did. That was just how things had to be.

She knocked twice on the door to the study, took a deep breath and stepped inside. Taking a deep breath, she stepped inside the study as her features relaxed into as warm a smile as she could manage. All four gentlemen in the study stood.

She spotted him right away.

She had expected him to be a little shorter. She hadn't counted on him being very handsome either. That was beside the point entirely, of course. She would have had to marry him even if he looked like the underside of a well-used shoe. She hadn't expected the colour of his eyes either. He didn't smile back but gave her a very proper formal bow as her cousin introduced them.

"Hibari-san, please let me introduce to you my cousin, Suzuki Adelheid."